What matters to you politically... No Labels Allowed.

Originally posted by beezzer
I believe government should protect from outside aggression.
After that?
Nothing much else.

Leave it to the individual states for everything else.

I would also add that the government should enforce contracts. I should be able to enter into any type of contractual relationship that I want with
another party, but the government should be able to enforce if one of us defaults.

I believe that our Government should do its job and be Governed by the people and for the people of this once great nation, instead of the corporate
elite always having there say, also the government should keep Religion and politics seperate, when mixed together, its a bomb!!! To many people
having different beliefs there is no wonder we cant get our Governmnet to do anything. Also the Governmnet should stop all these free hand outs to
people who are just riding the system, stop the monthly checks, and make people get off there lazy ass, and get out and work, build, help, whatever it
may be, nobody should have a free ride until Retirement. Unless you are disabled or mentally not there, then you should get help, but really any able
body person should be up right now, getting ready for work, school, family, But no way in hell should you be sitting down playing video games, smoking
weed, and getting a monthly check from the Gov, Crazy world crazy

1. Stop trying to be the world policemen. Simply put, it's too expensive. We shouldn't have troops on foreign soil unless there is some direct benefit
to our interests, and protecting that interest results in a profit over non-involvement. The sole exception is aiding in the case of a natural
disaster or crisis.

2. Stop paying blood money to nations to not seek a nuke program. Simply put, it's paying extortion. Let them get nukes. The more that have them, the
less likely war is to happen (because of the consequences). The tech is over half a century old anyhow, so anyone who wants it can easily have it (and
likely keep it secret while we pay them the money!)

3. Become a PRODUCER nation again. There are ways to do this, even with higher labor wages.

4. Utilize our own oil reserves. We haven't built a new refinery in this nation in ages, and there is no reason for it (other than a lot of government
red tape). We have larger oil reserves than Saudi Arabia, if we just tapped them. In a decade, we could (if we really wanted to), tell all foreign oil
to take a hike, and put a HUGE dent in the Middle East's oil profits.

5. Work on social reform like healthcare, social security, etc. However, the above things have to happen first, to provide the FUNDING for it.

6. Pay off the debt. With the above steps, we could erase our deficit, and get back to a surplus.

7. Revamp campaign finance and the whole two-party system. It's ridiculous that we should be locked into thinking we can only choose two final
candidates for President (or any other office).

8. Restructure taxes to where they provide incentive for business, without giving loopholes that result in companies paying almost NO taxes.

9. Engage in wars only for a clear objective (and gain), not police actions.

10. Provide tools to educate voters and encourage more participation in the process. The PEOPLE, not special interest groups, should be the ones
putting people into office.

Government should Protect it's people and it's borders. Enforce the laws we all ready have. Give the states the right to determine what is best for
them. And set some new term limits. For all political office's. The seperation of church & state should be at the forefront of it all.

It's really simple. Pull out that Constitution, dust it off and apply the words written within it. Do it now, before it's dismantled even more. That
Virginia earthquake, it was our founding fathers, rolling over in their graves.

Resign en masse . The majority of functions they do can be done cheaper, easier and more efficiently by private companies. As to disaster aid what
ever happened to good old fashioned neighbor helping neighbor in such times rather than whinging for handouts from government, charities and relief
groups.
People need to accept that part of living is risk always has been always will be. Also they need to be responsible for their own actions rather than
be a burden and expect big brother to provide their every need and protect them from the world.
World would be in better shape with no damn governments of any type.

the re-establishing of the free territory of trieste: my hometown has been a city state since 1719. after the II the allied force and onu gave us the
constitution of free teeritory, and a non taxed international port. during cold war, italy occupied half of it, jugoslvia the other half. now that
this is over, we want our freedom back. i want my doughter not to be raised in poverty brought by italy, but in a free state wich con commerce with
the whole world.

Originally posted by macman
You are under the impression that by doing away with the Fed Ed Dept, the states would drop standards.
That is going into the same belief that the people are too dumb to decide for themselves.

Actually I'm not under that impression which is why I don't think it makes a difference.

According to GeorgiaGirl's post that isn't even that case so what is it that the Dept of Ed is doing that makes you think they are strong arming
individual states?

While what she stated shows that money does indeed got to the top, if we look at Govt history, where there is money there is control.

OK but those countries are also culturally diverse. All contries are not matter how small they are. Heck you can see changes in a city like LA just by
going to different parts of the city. I'm just saying that that is not the reason. Sounds like a cop out to me.

Those nations are not "diverse". They are pretty darned homogeneous. America is uniquely celebrated as being diverse and, as such, we have
unique situations. LA is a great example of that blend and they have their own identity being as such. But if you dropped off a bunch of cowboys
from Texas in the middle of LA, I'm sure they wouldn't agree on whether or not it was day or night. So why have one centralized place tell those
Texan cowboys and those cats from LA who they can marry and what they can smoke? Makes no sense to me.

Social programs should be a hand up, not a hand out. That said, sometimes they really don't make sense.

Example, there was a time when my wife and I were both on unemployment. Luckily, the overlap wasn't a long time, but still, made for a very hard
couple of months. (obviously, both of us were trying madly to get another job, and did so).

However, a really weird thing. With both of us on unemployment, you'd think that we'd qualify for food assistance. Turns out, we made $200 too much
per month (on unemployment) to qualify. Can you believe that?

We used unemployment assistance for its intention (as an interim assist while trying to find more work)...and I'm thankful it existed. It allowed us
to get back on our feet within the year...but there needs to be a LOT more common sense applied to how it is done.

I believe there should be no government at all. Leave the people alone and let mother nature keep us in check. No other animals have a government. The
world spins with or without one; probably a little less wobbly without one.

I guess we differ greatly here, I am not under the assumption that laws are written for what-ifs, I am under the assumption (Dangerous word, I know,
but don't have time to do the actual research), that laws and regulations are written for the most part, after the fact. When a problem becomes
known, they attempt to enact legislation to prevent it from happening again.

Before anything in your post can happen, the citizens of whatever country have to realize we are human before anything.

And by being human before anything else, are guaranteed respect as such. See the problem, in my opinion is that people lack that fundamental respect
for each other.

No, not respect as a conservative, or geologist, or rapper. Respect as a human being first. That respect is due to every single human on this planet
regardless of race, sex, etc

Most of the problems of this world arise because of lack of respect. I respect a person as a person first. A breathing human being, just like myself.
Then whatever other professions or views he has that might impress me, I add on to the list. He could be racist, I may not respect his racist views,
but he is still a human and still guaranteed that first level of respect.

I guess we differ greatly here, I am not under the assumption that laws are written for what-ifs, I am under the assumption (Dangerous word, I know,
but don't have time to do the actual research), that laws and regulations are written for the most part, after the fact. When a problem becomes
known, they attempt to enact legislation to prevent it from happening again.

Somewhat like locking the barn after the horse is stolen.

If you believe in Liberty and Freedom, you will hopefully come to the idea that just because one person does something, a law should not be developed
denying others freedom.
Say someone buys a legal M16, fully auto rifle.
Now, said person goes out and kills people.
The knee jerk reaction is to not only react to the person, but then to ban the purchase of the rifle.
That ban does nothing to punish the person that committed the act.
It punishes everyone else.
it does not stop people from illegally getting the rifle and does not stop murder.

That is the difference.

We don't need more, bigger, stricter and intrusive laws.
We need to just establish punishment for the action of murder.

Politicians need to be put back in their place and serve the people, not the other way around. They are not entitled to serve us but rather
allowed to. On the federal level, they need to get back to upholding the Constitution.

Divisiveness needs to be stopped in it's tracks. No more "us" and "them"; it's all about "We". Cronyism and the protectionist mentality of
our politicians needs to come to a end. Complete transparency and accountability. Corruption is to be deal with severely and swiftly. Non-partisan
watchdog groups will keep our government in check, from the President down to the janitors at the White House.

More control needs to be put back into the hands of the people. Key issues will be voted on by the the citizens, not congress or the senate. The old
boys club will be a thing of the past; you show up to work and serve the people not to make back room deals in exchange for a position on the
President's cabinet.

All interest accrued by the Fed, on money printed out of thin air will go to fund public healthcare, insured by private insurers. All politicians will
be afforded the same healthcare and insurance that is available to the general public.

Appeals to the administration for special consideration concerning grants, contracts, etc will be in a public forum, not behind closed doors. If you
want to be considered for a contract, you will present your merits to a bi-partisan board and such awards will be given based on merit,
qualifications, experience, etc. There will be NO "string pulling". If there is, it will be dealt with as serious breech of protocol.

Once our public servants have been reeled back in and their duties redefined and reiterated then we can tackle the issues.

As a Christian, I also want a government headed by Christians that protects and encourages Christian values.

I originally wanted to post in response to the OP, but I feel the need to address the above comment. I used to share this thought, but now feel
extremely troubled when I see someone bring the label of "Christian" or "God" into politics now that I have opened my mind up and actually
researched and prayed about the issue. Mind you, I consider myself a devout Christian (not a Christian only on Sunday mornings), but I want to make a
couple of points here.

First, think about the past and all of the harm inflicted by the established roman catholic church (Holy wars, etc.). I am sure some people in the
church had good intentions, but anytime religion is intertwined with politics, the results are disastrous. The religious party always claims they are
doing the right thing, while the rest of the people abhor them and their actions. Politics=power. Power=corruption. Christianity in politics =
power = corruption on a large scale, no matter if the intentions are good. Even today, you hear a lot of non-believers (even on ATS) bashing
Christianity because of actions attributable to the church in the political arena. Think about the discovering of America- where protestant whites
literally invaded the country (supposedly pursuant to God's intentions) and killed thousands of Indians and native peoples, enslaved Africans to make
the trip, and pushed many native tribes to the verge of extinction. Would we, as Christians, want these actions to be associated with
Christianity?

Second, Christ always taught others to love one another, and NEVER taught war or retaliation as a means of revenge (if you disagree, please prove me
otherwise). As an example, take 9/11 (assume the official story is true). Can you imagine a bunch of Christian politicians responding to 9/11?
Would the U.S. have simply "turned its cheek"? I think not! I am speculating but I believe we would have still engaged in war against terrorism.
This is exactly the opposite of what Christ taught, and would be hypocrisy at its finest. Think of how many non-Christians would be completely turned
off from Christianity and how many people in the world would not be led to Christ. The government and politics are always going to involve wars for
power or certain agendas. Christ (and God) did not intend for Christians to get caught up in the mess.

Christ taught that we, as Christians, are "in the world" but not "of the world". We should be distinct from anything established for worldly
purposes (government, politics, corporations, etc.). This does not mean that Christians cannot participate in government or politics, but that we
should not bring the name of "religion" into our participation. If you oppose something in the political arena, oppose it on moral grounds- not
religious grounds. Do not taint the name of Christ or his teachings. If you go back and look at Christ and his teachings, as well as the teachings
of his followers (Paul, etc.), most of the time they were addressing hypocrisy in the church, and hardly (if at all) did they address
governmental/political leader matters.

Repeal the Patriot Act and NAFTA. I'm sure there are many other things that need to be repealed.

Tell the Federal Reserve to go jump in the lake. Much of the money we owe is interest due to them. Put creating money back in US government's
hands.

Keep the welfare programs especially now, and reduce them when people can get back on their feet. Mainly due to the increase of jobs, and people
needed to fulfill those jobs.

After NAFTA is repealed, any company overseas who calls themselves a US company or transferred from the US to overseas can get hit with a 50% tarrif
tax I believed it is called. Basically for causing harm to the citizens of the US, and being too greedy. Any company that decides to bring all their
operations back to the US will have that 50% lifted, and they have six months to a year before they are slammed with it again.

Do away with all corporate and business tax deductibles and loopholes. Start with a clean slate.
* They can get 5% flat deductible for their overhead.
* The more employees you hire, the less taxes you pay. Their deductible can increase when their employees increase up to 50% off of their taxes.
* They can get a tax deductible for lowering their prices on all products they sell, and keeping them lowered for a minimum of a year. If they raise
the prices after a year, the deductible goes away. The lower the prices go, the more deductibles they can get of say up to 25%.

Business top executives can only make 300X of the lowest paid employees. If they want larger salaries, then they will have to increase the wages of
the lowest paid employees. All other wages have to fall in between the top paid and lowest paid employees.

Get rid of the stock market game. If you absolutely have to keep it, corporations only have to buy back their stock at the price they sold the stock
initially plus 5% interest. Corporations could pay out 5% of profit a year split across all owed stocks until what is owed is paid off. Other than
that if investors want to play the stock market game they can. Their profits and losses comes from the actual trading. It will not change what the
corporation owes on the stock even if an investor pays 10x what the original was worth. If the stock plummets and the corporation is still strong, it
will not kill or bankrupt the corporation. The investor might go bankrupt, but the corporation will continue paying out based on profit made.

Once these and other laws designed to increase job growth and lower prices, then we can look at reducing welfare. By this time unemployment rates
should have gone down and not just governmental static rates.

Social security should be integrated into a true retirement plan where the government can't take money out of the plan no matter how much surplus it
gets. Those who show they have their own retirement plan can receive a tax deduction since their social security money is going to help stabilize it
for those who need it and will need it. It could turn into a charity retirement fund for the poor. A person can donate into social security, and get
even further tax deductions. If you donate $50, you get $50 tax deduction up to x amount.

The tax code needs to be simplified. I know some believe in eliminating taxes all together. I don't think that will happen.

I like the idea of true universal healthcare such as France and Canada has in the movie Sicko. Maybe my idea goes a little further. All hospital,
doctor, and medicines are paid for. I know you are paying for it in taxes. I still believe it will be a lot cheaper to pay for it in taxes than have
to buy health care insurance at today's rates. Even with everyone having to buy it in the future, I still believe the rates will stay the same if not
go up. For those of you who say I'm young and healthy, and don't need insurance. Eventually you will be old and in need of care. Who is to say that
you won't have an accident tomorrow where you will need surgery? I like the idea in the movie Sicko where in France you can stay in the hospital and
actually recover. You are not kicked out early because of insurance or it is too expensive.

For those who argue it will create death panels, I'm sorry they are already here. Our insurance has created some great death panels by denying
coverage for the smallest little misstep a person makes. Everyone says private business does things better than government. According to that theory,
the government can't be any worse, and more people will more than likely get treated and live.

I honestly believe if the government takes care of it's people properly there will be lower crime, more production, and higher moral overall.

Can I dare to dream working less hours, making more money, and reasonable child care and babysitting costs even for children who are a little older.
Not young enough to be in child care, but not old enough to be on their own either.

Of course where there is money there is control but she said that the control of the content of what is being taught is in the hands of the state so
blaming the fed sounds like the states passing the buck.

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